The Wild Hunt

Caden Lyndsey was a Man of God. He battled demons, saw visions of the
future, and wielded the fire of Heaven.

He lost his faith, but not his power.

Now, his visions drive him toward rural Washington. A madman seeks to
summon the Norse god Wotan and unleash the Wild Hunt on an unsuspecting
populace. If he succeeds, hundreds will die. Caden must battle witches,
monsters, and ancient deities in order to stop him.

Spoiler warning: these posts are (obviously) going to be spoiler heavy, so if you haven’t read the book yet, but plan to, be careful.

Also, I don’t want to spoil things from people who are reading along with us, so please don’t talk about things that happen in latter chapters. Once these chapter-by-chapter posts are done, I’ll do one last, whole-book post where we can talk about anything that didn’t fit into a particular chapter.

If you don’t have the book, you can get it right now in digital format. And if you order the paperback, you can get a free digital copy. (Also: let me know if you have a problem getting that digital copy. It’s worked for everyone that’s tried so far, but I still don’t entirely trust it.)

– Angelica’s Palace of Pain – Court Room of Killing –

Angelica: Hi Michael! I’m so glad my plan worked and you killed your little strumpet and now you’re mine all mine and no longer a vegetarian!

0 Responses to “Sire Book Club – Chapter Twenty-Five”

I like your witch – err, hobbyist – so much better than the 2D TVD variety. Evan’s mythology just feels right, and I say that as a recovering Catholic. Love the whole mythology you are using, and can’t wait to read what comes next. If you need an editor for that one, I volunteer. Really. I know I’d be able to help you out. And, I’d love to wade through the thickened plot sooner than later!

Haven’t read all the previous posts chapter by chapter, but still trying to get a grip on what really causes someone to become a vampire in your mythology. Caitlin basically had all her blood replaced with vampire blood, and so transitioned?

I’m glad you liked Evan and his mythology. I’m a recovering Catholic, as well, so I dropped a bit of my own backstory into him.

Thanks for volunteering … if you send me an email through the “contact me” link up above, I’ll add you to my list of potential editors.

Michael actually explains the process of making a vampire in Chapter Five:

SPOILERS but if you’re reading this you’ve been spoiled already:

“There was a trial, the same council that slapped Liam on the wrist. They sentenced me to death.

“But Angelica overruled them. She had the authority to commute my sentence, and instead of being killed, she said that I would be reborn. She tried to spin it by saying that she was turning me into what I had tried to destroy, but I know that she thought she was doing me a favor.”

“How did it happen?” Caitlin asked in a hushed voice.

“The blood. Her blood. A little will heal you. A lot will addict you. But too much … too much and you become one of them.

A vampire doesn’t need to drink your blood, they just have to give you enough of their blood in order to cause the change. It’s basically like an overdose; your heart pounds faster and faster, then gives out … and the next night you wake up with fangs.

Dying with vampire blood in your system doesn’t mean anything in this world, and you don’t need to feed to complete the transition. And for the True Blood fans reading, you don’t have to be buried with your Sire or anything, either.

True, the whole waking up undead in the ground next to your maker thing is a little icky. I remembered Michael explaining it, but it all seems so, “oops I didn’t mean to drink that much and now I’m a vampire”. Caitlin was literally dry so no kidding refilling her would do it, but it seems like maybe it could happen accidentally really easily. Just wondering if there was something more specific. Thanks!

The fact that people can go “too far” and just become vampires is intentional. I want there to be a risk in drinking vampire blood, or continually using it to heal yourself.

It doesn’t happen without warning, though. Caitlin was starting to feel the effects of Michael’s blood – better night vision, predatory instincts – and even if you turn the first time you drink, there are signs before it’s too late. Caitlin was nearly dead, but the way Michael felt her heart start to pound and the way she clutched his arm, desperate for more of his blood, that’s a sign that she was about to make the transition. If you get to that heart-pounding stage and then your heart stops, you’ve gone too far and your going to wake up dead.

As to waking up underground next to your Sire … vampires are, in a lot of cases, metaphors for sexually transmitted diseases. I think having to “sleep” with your maker in TB is just an extension of that.

And in Dracula (the original book), Mina was “catching” vampirsim without drinking blood, just from repeated contact with the Count.